The state has given the village 30 days to address a number of issues.

Facing the threat of a state takeover of its building and fire code inspections, Spring Valley Mayor Demeza Delhomme said Wednesday that the village was getting its building department in order.

The New York Division of Building Standards and Codes warned the village on Oct. 6 that it had 30 days to address longstanding concerns over fire safety in the village, including problems with inspection records, building permits and applications.

They outlined four steps the village needed to take in that time span: Provide an up-to-date list of properties for inspection; review its enforcement program; provide records for three private religious schools using classroom trailers; and digitize Building Department records.

Documentation that the village has taken these steps is due to the state this week.

Standing in Village Hall as a pair of employees pulled blueprints from file cabinets, Delhomme maintained the village was "all up to date" and warned other county politicians to "stay away from the village."

"There are a few little things here and there," he said, "which is normal. We will go ahead and fix it."

Delhomme said he called the afternoon press conference to counter what he described as interference by county lawmakers in the matter and mischaracterization of the situation in the media.

"We are capable of doing our own job," Delhomme said, in reference to County Executive Ed Day's offer to step in to help. "Believe it or not, no matter how you put it in the paper."

Day responded that he was "heartened" to hear that the village was acting on an issue that had hit a critical stage.

"It was never our intention to take the lead from his office," he told The Journal News. "But the mayor needs to understand the residents of Spring Valley deserve to be as safe as any other Rockland County resident."

Day cautioned that the county was still waiting to hear from the state as to whether officials there believed Spring Valley had met its obligations by the deadline.

During a follow-up visit in March, state officials found failures to inspect buildings and schools, as well as to meet the minimum standards required for issuing building permits, requiring permit applications, conducting construction inspections and issuing certificates of occupancy.

Delhomme described the two-and-a-half-square-mile village of 32,000 as chronically short of staff with only one full-time inspector. He complained again that his attempt to hire more inspectors has been thwarted by the majority on the Board of Trustees who remain at loggerheads on many issues facing the financially-strapped village.